Strong hike to one of the highest permanent structures in Canada. Spend some time on the Continental Divide. Stunning views over the mountains. Reachable by bus or on foot. 26km roundtrip hike and scramble.
Built in 1922 with the stones from the pass, the Abbot Pass Hut and has served both as a base for mountaineers and as a destination for strong hikers ever since. Sitting at 2,926 meters' elevation, it is second only to the Neil Colgan Hut on the list of highest permanent structures in Canada. The hut is on the Continental Divide, so the provincial and National Park borders run straight through its middle.
How to Get There
The Abbot Pass Hut is reached via Lake O'Hara is by a Parks Canada bus (which runs from June to September only) or a 13-kilometer hike. From Lake O'Hara, excellent trails lead to Lake Oesa, which is followed by 1,500 vertical feet of difficult scrambling and hiking on scree slopes. Stay the night or head back on down. On your return down the pass, you can extend your hike to one of the five trail heads that surround Lake O'Hara. The total hike takes four to five hours.